prompt: spaghetti straps — Retreat
notes: i know it's been a while and i'm sorry for not being diligent about everything (that pile of un-updated fics is lookin' real pretty) but school is a bitch and well, to be perfectly honest tumblr is pretty fucking addicting. (eren—jager if anyone was curious.)

ix.

Lucy decides that it's rather nice to go shopping with a friend. It's been a while since she's had enough extra money to even entertain the idea (the 3DS and Chrom can wait because there are some things that are necessary in this world), but when she finally did the math over and over again, she joyously allowed herself to step foot into Forever21 (because everyone knows you don't go into f21 and leave without buying something).

"Isn't this one cute!?" Lucy grabs a pastel button-up top from the rack and puts it up to herself, also while simultaneously giving the girl hogging the mirror her look of 'bitch i will give you til zero to gtfo.'

"I guess..." Natsu rubs the back of his neck with an expression of absolute bliss and enthusiasm and—just kidding, he looks terribly bored, and Lucy is pretty sure he regrets everything about agreeing to go shopping with her. She snorts. Oh well, not her problem.

"Try not to look like you want to stab yourself in the genitals, Natsu." She ushers him over to the table of lingerie. He follows wordlessly but heaves a heavy sigh. As if she wouldn't notice—it's totally on purpose. No one even sighs that loud, Natsu. NO ONE.

As she rummages around the corpses of feminine undergarments, Natsu casually picks up a black bra with a single finger, dangling it precariously before them.

Lucy narrows her eyes because he has that smirk on again, and she has to ready her throat-punching fists in case he decides to say something utterly idiotic and deserving of it.

He lets his eyes rake up and down her body, and no, she did not shiver, NOPE. "What are you, Lucy? Double Ds?"

She scoffs and rolls her eyes, fighting the heat in her cheeks because NO NO NO DON'T GIVE HIM THE SATISFACTION DON'T—

"Don't give yourself so much credit, Natsu—you're a double A at most," comes a new voice, unfamiliar, and wow did he just say something moderately insulting to her Natsu?

(Did she really just refer to him as 'her' Natsu, like really.)

"Ew, go away, Gray," he makes a face at the dark-haired dude who just nonchalantly invited himself into their bubble. Instead of retorting, he ignores Natsu (wow rude much) and turns to face Lucy.

"Hi, I'm Gray, and I think you're pretty cute," he waves at her and shrugs, sounding like it wasn't a little creepy to call someone you just met attractive.

She wants to say something, anything, but instead chokes on her spit (real smooth). Natsu puts a hand on her shoulder, and yeah sure it would have been reassuring, except he's squeezing kind of hard and it kind of hurts.

"Okay, we're leaving now, have fun flirting with middle schoolers, Gray, BYE," Natsu all but shoves her in the exact opposite direction of a smug-looking Gray, and Lucy has to slap at him several times just to wriggle free of his grasp.

"Oh no, I don't know what beef you have with creepy guy over there, but we are not leaving until I try this shirt on," she holds up the pink tank for him to see. It's cute. Like, super cute. He should understand.

He wrinkles his nose at the mention of Gray, and says, "Why not just buy it?"

"Because what if I don't like how it looks on me?"

He gives her the 'are you serious right now' face and almost pouts, "Well I don't like it."

Her jaw drops because WOW HE DID NOT JUST SAY THAT. "You suck—it's totally cute!"

"But they're..." He fiddles with the fabric. "Noodle straps, or whatever."

She stares at him. And then she frowns and blinks because wait, what?

"Noodle? Noodle, Natsu, noodle straps?" She asks. "Noodle str—you mean spaghetti straps?"

"Yeah, that! I was close, whatever."

"Not even," Lucy sighs. "What's wrong with spaghetti straps?"

Natsu looks away and rubs his neck, "I dunno—it's revealing...?"

"Wow, what century do you live in, Natsu?" She laughs to herself in crooked amusement and heads for the fitting rooms. He opens his mouth to protest, but she only walks faster, weaving through people and racks.

,

In the privacy of the fitting room, Lucy quickly removes her current shirt and slips on the pink tank, twirling around to examine it in the mirror.

Oh yeah. This is definitely going to be hers.

Just as she is about to pull it off, fingers resting on the hem, her curtain is yanked open forcefully. She bites her tongue to silence the scream, hands flying up to cover her (still-clothed) boobs.

"OHMYGODSWEETJESUSCHRISTONROLLERSKATES, NATSU, what are you doing."

He doesn't answer. Instead, Natsu hastily steps closer (oh yeah come right on in, don't even bother asking), closes the curtain with one hand, and stares at her with piercing eyes.

Don't melt, god damn it, DON'T MELT.

He pushes her back against the wall, softly. "Hey, Luce," his hooded gaze meets hers, petrified. "I think... I think I might like you. Like a lot."

WHAT WHAT WHAT WHAT WHAT!?

Okay, there a time and place for everything...

Natsu leans in a little closer, and oh god she can smell him, and it's just amazing (wow that's pretty creepy of her), and and and—

"Do you think maybe you might like me t—"

It's too much. It's all too much for her to handle: Natsu's proximity, Natu's eyes, Natsu's scent, Natsu's face coming closer and closer, Natsu's sudden confession that makes her insides do mad flips because maybe, just maybe she does like him too. And so grabs his face, bringing it the rest of the way, and kisses him.

It starts out soft and delicate (like both are too scared), but then his tongue, hot and fiery, brushes her bottom lip, and she lets out a small, strangled sound. At this, Natsu's kisses are rougher, harder, almost needy, and Lucy's mind shuts down because she doesn't want to think about where they are, what they're doing. She just wants to feel him.

She's vaguely aware that his hands are everywhere: cupping her face, stroking her hair, running up and down her arms, teasing the hem of her shirt, on her waist, and then back to her face again. Her fingers thread through his dusty pink tresses, massaging and raking, heart beating wildly at the low growl in the back of his throat.

When they pull apart, breathing hard, Lucy throws out her pride and pulls him closer into a hug, wounding her arms tightly around his neck. There's a thundering pulse in her ears, but she isn't sure if it's his or her own.

"That's a yes, by the way," she says. "That I like you too, I mean."

He pauses in his heavy breathing to pull back, and she swears she almost dies at the sight of his big ass grin. She contemplates saying 'just kidding' and then kicking him out just to wipe that shit-eating grin off his pretty, little face, but all thoughts immediately dissolve when he he leans back down to kiss and nibble her lips.

Yeah, they're still in a fitting room, and he is still randomly romantic enough to give her a heart attack, but whatever.

"The shirt looks good on you," he manages through kisses. Lucy can't help but smile hard against his lips.

,

,

,

(She made out with her attractive friend-but-more (boyfriend?) with pink hair in a fitting room at Forever21. Top that, Levy.)

notes: okay, this is well over 1000 words, but eh. the scene kinda called for more than that, wouldn't you agree? omg omg omfg yes it finally happened. it is terribly late right now, and i'm pretty sure this turned out pretty rushed and shitty but i honestly don't care right now.

i also want to take this random moment to thank everyone who has ever read and enjoyed this fic. like, honestly, i can't express how amazing you all are 'cause i just started this as an excuse to write inter-related short-as-hell drabbles about natsu and lucy working at a mall. seriously, this actually has no plot, but you all seem to love it, so thank you so much, precious people. i love you all.

(sorry for that long ass author's note.)

ps: have a prompt that is irrelevant to 'cls'? send it to me on tumblr!